When are the capsule fruits ripe and the seeds ready for harvest?
After lilies have finished flowering and the flowers have wilted on the plant, the capsule fruits emerge.
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It takes a lot of strength for the lilies to develop the seeds. Therefore, if you are not after the seeds, cut off the dried inflorescence. If you want to harvest the seeds for sowing, wait until the fruits are ripe and burst open. Cut the fruit and remove the seeds. As a rule, numerous seeds are present in the capsule fruits.
The ripeness of the capsule fruits reaches its peak in autumn. The upright, up to 7 cm long and oblong-round capsule fruits are colored brown at this time and burst open. You have three chambers inside. There the seeds are lined up close together.
Characteristics of the seeds
The seeds of lilies vary in size depending on the species and variety. They have an average size of 0.5 cm. Furthermore, they are flat, rounded to triangular, narrowly winged and dipped in a light brown shade.
Germinating seeds
The seeds of lilies germinate irregularly. It can take up to 2 years for a seedling to appear. Other seeds germinate after a few days. Because of this irregularity, it is advisable to sow several seeds at once.
The sowing is carried out as follows:
- harvest in autumn
- store in the refrigerator or dry
- start sowing between January and February
- Soak seeds in water for 3 days
- sow in seed compost (1 cm deep)
- keep soil moistured
- ideal germination temperature (different from variety to variety): 15 to 20 ° C
- Plant out from May
- Time to first flower: 3 to 4 years
Tips & Tricks
If you want to get exceptional varieties with different properties than the mother plant, you should cross the pollen of different varieties with each other during the flowering period.
